Henry Heimlich, 96, Finally Uses Famous Technique To Save A Life

CINCINNATI -- The 96-year-old Cincinnati surgeon credited with developing his namesake Heimlich manoeuvre recently used the emergency technique for the first time himself to save a woman choking on food at his senior living centre.

Dr. Henry Heimlich told The Cincinnati Enquirer in an interview Thursday he has demonstrated the well-known manoeuvre many times through the years but had never before used it on a person who was choking.

An employee at the Deupree House in Cincinnati where Heimlich lives says the retired chest surgeon was in the room when an 87-year-old woman began choking. The employee says Heimlich dislodged a piece of hamburger from the woman's airway and she quickly recovered.

Heimlich says it made him appreciate how wonderful it has been "to be able to save all those lives."